


We light the darkness, you and I

by RedWritingHood



Category: DCU (Comics), Green Lantern - All Media Types, The Flash (Comics)
Genre: Gen, but they're also cutie patooties, first meeting as civilians, it's just facts I don't make the rules here, these guys are clueless
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-09
Updated: 2019-08-09
Packaged: 2020-08-13 12:41:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 655
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20174437
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RedWritingHood/pseuds/RedWritingHood
Summary: Green Lantern and The Flash meet as civilians for the first time. Neither of them are aware of this. Somehow, they manage to charm each other all the same.





	We light the darkness, you and I

**Author's Note:**

> Title is from "Light Up the Sky" by Christina Aguilera.

Sitting in a diner, hot cup of coffee in hand, eyes on the television on the wall in the far corner, Hal feels deeply chagrined. The channel is currently depicting footage of one of Green Lantern's fights two days ago, and honestly . . . it was not his best.

To be fair, he had just gotten back from a long, tension-filled, conflict-ridden brokering of a peace treaty between two warring civilizations. He'd been tired and hungry and maybe slightly delirious, and all he wanted was some food and a warm bed, then out of nowhere he has to fight some new, lame villain of the week? Calling himself Sharkmongo, of all things.

Hal watches himself pull back his fist, say, "You like fish so much, have a face full a' salmon!" and swing a giant, glowing, green fish at the shark-man. At the time, he remembers thinking,_ 'Wait, a shark is a fish right? Or is it something else, like how spiders aren't actually bugs? Does this even matter right now?'_

The fish smacks Sharkmongo in the face, and Hal can't watch anymore. He covers the upper-half of his face with a hand and groans. "Stupid . . ."

"Well, it's not his greatest one-liner, but I'm sure it can be forgiven considering the circumstances," remarks a voice originating from the stool beside Hal's.

Hal turns to see a blond, blue-eyed man in a white coat. There's a stack of pancakes on the counter in front of him, slathered in syrup, and a steaming mug beside the plate.

"The circumstances?" Hal echoes. This man can't possibly know that he'd been running on pure willpower at that point, literally.

"Oh, well . . . you know . . . shark people can be . . . difficult." Blondie waves his fork around slightly. Syrup drips off the pancake attached to it, splattering on the plate below. "I mean, the Flash, for instance, has had trouble dealing with King Shark in the past. Or . . . I would assume he has. I wouldn't know personally, of course." The man stops talking, shoving the pancake into his mouth and glancing away.

Since Hal, as Green Lantern, does know the Flash personally, he knows this is true. Still . . .

"Yeah, but the Flash probably would've had that fight over with in half the time it took Green Lantern." It's weird talking about himself in the third person, but if Batman can do it . . . "Hitting that guy with a fish just made him angry. It was a dumb move." Aaand, now TV-Hal is attacking Sharkmongo with glowing, green versions of _Finding Nemo_ characters. Hal is mortified.

"He was . . . probably just tired. The Flash makes mistakes, too, when he's exhausted," Blondie defends.

"The Flash never used cartoon characters in a fight." Hal winces as the Hal on screen hits Sharkmongo in the eye with Dory. He looks somewhat maniacal in that shot. Jeez, he really needed some rest.

"It worked, didn't it?" The man smiles fondly, eyes soft as he watches Green Lantern bind Sharkmongo with constructed fishing wire.

Hal turns to look at him, a grin making its way onto his lips. "You a GL fan?"

"You could say that. He's a . . . good hero."

"Good looking, too," Hal adds, smirking.

"Oh, yes," Blondie agrees. "That sleek uniform, that handsome face . . . that red hair . . ."

"Red--?" Hal recoils, scrunching up his face. "Ugh, no, not him."

The man laughs, and Hal feels like they're somehow in on the same joke. This is how similar to hanging out with Flash, he realizes. Easygoing, humorous, warm. Friendly.

"What about you? Are you a fan of the Flash?" Blondie asks, smiling.

"Definitely." He offers his hand. "I'm Hal, by the way." 

Blondie shakes it. "Barry."

"Nice to meet you, Barry," Hal says, sincerely.

Barry's smile is half-hidden behind the coffee mug he raises to his mouth, but Hal can see the way it crinkles his eyes. They remind him of the Flash's eyes, blue and warm. "Nice to meet you, too, Hal."


End file.
